Invoking Lincoln, Brownback urges Kansans to make peace

In proclaiming a Week of Reconciliation in Kansas, Gov. Sam Brownback invoked the words of a president pleading for peace in a nation on the brink of civil war.

Brownback on Friday declared Nov. 19-25 as a Week of Reconciliation in Kansas. It’s the seventh consecutive year he has issued the proclamation, which covers the week of Thanksgiving.

“Making peace through reconciliation requires humility, patience, and understanding,” Brownback said in a prepared statement. “If each of us approach conflict resolution with those values, we can move forward with cohesiveness and harmony.”

He then invoked a passage from Abraham Lincoln’s first inaugural speech, which was delivered on March 4, 1861.

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“Our nation has overcome deep wounds through reconciliation,” Brownback said. “I hope these words of President Lincoln can resonate deeply within us in the upcoming holidays and always: ‘We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.’”